Contrary to what was suggested by reports about deciding the identity of the countries that may undertake the task of verifying the work of the Lebanese army after the end of the “UNIFIL” mission, Washington and Israel returned the file to the negotiating circle, confirming that there is no agreement yet on the composition of the international body that will monitor implementation in the “experimental areas,” while communications continue in preparation for the resumption of the political track in Rome in early September.
According to a report by journalist Idan Koller on the Israeli Walla website, senior American and Israeli officials denied, yesterday evening, Wednesday, what was reported by Reuters regarding Lebanon and Israel reaching an agreement on the identity of the countries that may participate in a future international mechanism in Lebanon, whose mission is to supervise the disarmament of Hezbollah and verify the work of the Lebanese army.
Reuters had reported, citing sources familiar with the file, that Lebanon and Israel had agreed on Britain, Italy, Switzerland and Indonesia, as countries that might contribute forces to the proposed mechanism, and that foreign forces would be deployed in Lebanon to verify the process of disarming Hezbollah.
However, an Israeli official familiar with the details denied the validity of this information, and told Walla: “There is no agreement on the composition of the body that will monitor and verify the work of the Lebanese army in the experimental areas. Negotiations on this issue are continuing.”
In the same vein, an American official denied that the two parties had reached an agreement, stressing that there is not yet an understanding between Lebanon and Israel regarding the countries that may deploy forces in Lebanon after the end of UNIFIL’s work, with the aim of assisting in the process of disarming Hezbollah, and stressing that discussions in this regard are still ongoing.
The identity of the party that will be responsible for verifying the work of the Lebanese army is one of the central issues that the two parties are working on within the framework of ongoing contacts under American mediation.
According to what was reported by “Walla”, a US State Department official said, after the end of 3 days of technical talks in Rome, that the parties had already agreed on the details required to implement the “pilot zones”, in addition to other aspects of the tripartite framework, including common definitions of the concepts of “verification” and “clearance” of the region, but essential details still need to be resolved.
The American official explained that one of the issues that is still under discussion is determining who will accurately verify the “cleansing” operations carried out by the Lebanese army. In this context, the talks discussed the possibility of entrusting the verification mission to a third party, in the context of a US-led diplomatic engagement that complements the tripartite framework.
During the Rome meetings, military delegations reached an understanding on working standards, common maps and a roadmap that would later allow the opening of additional “pilot areas.” In the next round of technical talks, Lebanon is expected to present detailed plans to secure new areas, in parallel with continuing to implement the plan in areas where work has already begun.
During the talks, the United States also renewed its opposition to renewing the mandate of UNIFIL, while Lebanon and Israel agreed to work with Washington on a future formula that supports the tripartite framework.
It is expected that the political track will resume in Rome in early September, and contacts will continue until then in Beirut, Jerusalem, and Washington.
The US State Department official confirmed that Washington, despite the difficulties, is satisfied with the direction of progress in the talks, noting that the first “pilot areas” have already become active, and that the teams have succeeded in unifying the approach regarding professional terminology, maps and procedures.
On the other hand, the American official warned that Hezbollah was trying to obstruct the process, pointing out that Lebanon and Israel were facing internal political pressure.
He considered that the mere fact that teams from both sides sat together, communicated directly, and worked to formulate options for solutions constitutes, in itself, an important transformation.
According to the report, the American plan is to advance gradually, by first proving the success of the “pilot areas,” before moving on to expanding the model to include additional areas.
Thus, the file of the party that will monitor and verify the work of the Lebanese army remains open to negotiations, while the next stage seems linked to the parties’ ability to transform the technical understandings concluded in Rome into an executive formula that resolves one of the most sensitive points in the post-UNIFIL arrangements.
